Pianissimo
by FidgeyTova
Summary: Shusei remembers the night spent at the piano under the starry sky, reminiscing about his and his partner's past.


**I just wanted to write something about the time the two were sitting at the piano on that starry night :) Also I felt like writing more about their background and wanted to include all the little flashbacks we see of them throughout the anime… and it turned out like this XD**

**Im not sure of the timeline here, but I'm assuming as kids they lived at the mansion. (even though it looked like Hotsuma went to Shusei's house at one point) At least the room the piano was in seemed kinda big and almost resembled the mansion to me... I guess it doesn't matter ^_^" but for the sake of this story….they're in the mansion...**

**Please bear with me..**

**Disclaimer: …..I don't own Uraboku…**

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_**Pianissimo**_

Shusei had just arrived home from the school. He stayed late as he sometimes does and it was now getting darker outside. Despite it being late, the mansion was empty aside from the chef, doctor and maid. Yuki had gone out to visit the orphanage, obviously accompanied by Luka, while Touko had dragged her brother to go shopping. Hotsuma would also be home late.

Shusei had begun to walk to his room, and planned on reading the rest of the night as he was rather tired, but stopped in front of the door to his and his partner's room. With his hand on the door knob, he looked down the hall a little further. After a moment of thinking, he set his school bag on the ground near the door and continued down the hall.

He reached another room that is now very rarely visited anymore. He opened the door and in the middle of the room sat a large grand piano. Despite not having been played in a long time, the piano wasn't covered in dust, Aya keeps the place spotless. He was about to turn on the light in the room but decided not to; he preferred the muted light. He walked over to the piano and pulled out the bench and took a seat. He gently lifted the fall to expose the black and white keys. Sure, he hadn't played in a while, but that doesn't mean he had forgotten how to play. Back then, he enjoyed playing and even looked forward to his weekly lessons. Everyone was impressed with his ability to play.

He lifted his hands to the keys and started playing a few chords and scales; his fingers remembering the motions. After a few minutes of warming up he was ready to try a real piece. There were a few pages of sheets of music across the top of the piano. He searched through them and found an old favorite, Etude Opus 10, No 3 by Chopin, later nicknamed _Tristesse_.

He took a deep breath and began playing in rhythm with his breathing. Slowly began to play; the beginning was thoughtful and quiet. The gentle notes put his mind at ease and he began to relax. He forgot how much he loved playing. His mind was elsewhere as his fingers glided across the keys. After a few measures he no longer needed to rely on the sheet music for guidance as his fingers instinctively knew where to find the proper notes. He closed his eyes and let the melody flow.

….

Hotsuma had finally arrived home, before Yuki and the others made it back. With no one else home he didn't bother to stay downstairs and decided to go to his room and play video games. As he made it to his room, he noticed Shusei's bag on the floor, which was odd considering Shusei was a bit of a neat-freak. Before he could open the door he heard a familiar yet long forgotten noise.

_The piano room? _He thought. He could barely remember the last time Shusei was there…

….

The combination of the night sky and piano brought back memories of his and Hotsuma's childhood. How they were inseparable. Hotsuma wasn't one for music, not that he minded it, he didn't really care either way. Even when Shusei was practicing, Hotsuma stayed by his side. He remembered the night he played this song for the first time, even Hotsuma was impressed.

"_Wow! You've gotten a lot better!" Hotsuma had said, and he meant it. He was leaning on the side of the piano, looking at his friend._

"_It's alright. I made a few mistakes though..." Shusei wasn't good at accepting compliments._

"_Are you kidding?"_

_Shusei smirked, "How would you know, anyway? You probably don't even know who Chopin is." He wasn't trying to be mean._

"_Doesn't matter!" Hotsuma defended, "I think you played it well!"_

The memory made Shusei smile. Things were so much easier back then. There were only small little arguments like this. Nothing of great importance, only the problems of children.

….

Hotsuma stood outside the room with his eyes closed, listening to melody. He remembered this piece. His memory wasn't as horrible as everyone made it out to be.

"_I still need to practice more." Shusei had said, disappointed in his playing_

"_Well, yeah! But you'll be a great pianist one day!" Hotsuma was sure._

"_Maybe…" Shusei was putting the sheet music away and covered the keys, "It's getting late. We should probably go to bed." He was about to leave the room, and turned to look at Hotsuma, who wasn't behind him._

_Instead of walking out of the room, Hotsuma walked over to the window and drew open the curtains._

_Shusei stared at him curiously, "It's nighttime, why are you opening the curtains?" He asked._

"_Because, Look how beautiful the starts are! How can you close the curtains on them?" Hotsuma smiled as he looked out the window. _

_Shusei saw the smile on his face and eventually joined Hotsuma by the window and they looked at the stars; Hotsuma still talking about how talented his friend was at piano. The compliments had made Shusei happy. _

"_I'll practice a lot more." Shusei promised._

….

Shusei had lied. He began playing less and less, once they heard about what they are fated to do. Things had gotten worse since then. Their powers manifesting, Hotsuma accidentally hurting people, the suicide attempt…

Shusei's playing became harsher as he reached the middle of the piece.

….

The middle of the song caught Hotsuma's attention. The austerity made him remember things he wishes he could forget.

'_Shusei….they know I set people on fire….no one even tries to look at me…'_

'_Shusei….Shusei…I'm really here, aren't I?'_

'_Die Renjou Hotsuma'_

Hotsuma was amazed at how the music made him feel, how the absence of words can be even more true and accurate then spoken words. He wondered what emotions were driving Shusei's playing right now. If it's anything like he's playing, he's not sure he wants to know.

….

Shusei became aware of the severity of his playing. He had to will his fingers to slow down to properly match the pace of the piece as it came to an end. Soon, the piano began to gently hum again, bringing back the peace that was lost moments ago. As the last notes were played he allowed his fingers to rest on the keys letting the sounds softly resonate in the room until silence took over again. Shusei took in a deep breath, proud that he had remembered this song so well. His fingers slid off the keys and fell to his lap. After a few moments, he covered the keys and glanced towards the window. The curtains were closed. He got up, pushed in the bench, and walked over to the window and drew back the curtains, revealing the starry sky behind them. Shusei looked out at the stars with a sense of calmness, and was enjoying the tranquility of the night. The silence broke as he heard the door creak open.

"Hey." Hotsuma said.

"Hotsu-" Shusei hadn't noticed Hotsuma's presence. Some user of God's Eyes he is… "When did you get home?"

"A while ago." Hotsuma walked towards the window and leaned against it, "Haven't seen you in here in a while. Had an urge to play, huh?"

"I guess."

"You're still good. You should play more. It'd be good for you to get away from all that studying and police work. You need more time to yourself." Hotsuma suggested.

"You heard it all?"

"Most of it, yeah." Hotsuma rested his head against the wall and closed his eyes, deep in thought, "What's his name…Ch..Cho…Chopin, was it?"

Shusei smiled, happy he recalled the name, "Yeah, you remembered."

"Mmhm." Hotsuma stole a glance out the window. Shusei's eyes followed his. Just like when they were kids…

And at this moment, there was no talk of fighting Duras, no talk of Reiga or any other troubles. Just two friends finding solace when they can. Shusei took in the moment, knowing he really didn't do enough for himself, that he deserves a break once in a while, for his sake and Hotsuma's too.

"Stars are really bright tonight." Hotsuma said, interrupting Shusei's thoughts.

"Yeah, it's nice." Shusei looked over at the piano, the dark wood reflecting the starry sky, "Maybe, I will play more."

Hotsuma snorted, "You said that before."

"Well, will you listen if I do?"

"Huh? Well, yeah…I mean, if you want me too."

"Good." Shusei smiled.

After a few moments of silence, Hotsuma let out a big yawn and began walking out of the room, "Ya comin?"

"Yeah." Shusei followed him out. He stopped right outside the doorway, and took one last look at the piano before closing the door. He appreciated what playing had done for him tonight. It gave him a moment to really look at his past, to learn from it, and made him realize he needs to focus more on the present. Things aren't perfect now. They may never be. But things aren't bad now either. And he knows that he is strong enough to move forward.

"Hey! Let's go!" Hotsuma called for him.

Shusei closed the door and followed Hotsuma to their room and looked forward to playing again.

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**I meant to put this up a while ago….but forgot ^^"**

**I chose **_**Tristesse**_** for a two reasons. First it's French for 'sadness' which I think fits well. But despite the name I feel like you can interpret the melody however you wish. Second, I love Chopin. XD (i'm such a music nerd :p)  
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**I love stories about Hotsuma and Shusei as kids! I wanted an excuse to try that again, although it seems like there wasn't that much of it here. **

**Also, I have a new funny story in the works! And thanks to everyone who reviewed **_**Never Go To Bed Hungry**_** and **_**There's Such A Thing As Being Too Smart**_**! I'm happy so many people liked it! *hugs***

**And the Review button wants to be clicked! :D**


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